What Role Should Arda Turan Play for Barcelona in Final Months of Season?

Something hasn’t quite clicked for Arda Turan since he was allowed to start playing for Barcelona in January. The surprise is that people are surprised.

There is no doubt over Arda’s qualities as a player. The Turk was a key part of the Atletico Madrid side that won La Liga, the Copa del Rey, the UEFA Super Cup and the Spanish Super Cup.

He keeps a cool head in pressured situations, and he was a frequent provider of important goals and assists for the Rojiblancos as games drew on. Arda is also extremely versatile, able to play in the centre of midfield and also on either flank.

Arda signed for Barcelona at the end of last season, but thanks to the FIFA ban on the club registering players, he was only eligible to start appearing from the turn of the calendar year.

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In the six months between joining and when he made his debut, Arda has been learning. He’s been playing with his team-mates in training, slowly getting to know how the club works on a football level.

Many believed this would stand him in good stead when it came to actually playing, being able to hit the ground running. That hasn’t happened.

But it shouldn’t come as any shock. Take Arda’s footballing idol, Andres Iniesta, for example. The Turk told Catalunya Radio, h/t Sport, of his admiration for the Spain legend.

"

My all-time idol is Iniesta.

Sometimes people say I’m only three years younger than him, but he is my reference point.

I think I made the right decision to join Barcelona to play alongside him.

I have been criticised before for not scoring enough goals, but I always say that Iniesta is the example to follow.

What he is doing on the pitch is art and you cannot just look at his goals.

I used to feel bad when I played against him and fouled him—maybe that is why Barcelona signed me.

"

Iniesta is playing well at the moment, as he has been for the previous few months. But it should not be forgotten that for the first six months of the season, he looked lost on the pitch.

A player as talented as Iniesta, struggling to find his place in the side where he has spent his whole career.

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Barcelona were shuttling the ball to the forwards as quickly as possible and the attacking midfielder seemed rushed and ineffective.

Eventually the 31-year-old started playing deeper, gradually graduating into a role closer to that of Xavi Hernandez, with the pair starting together only on rare occasions.

So if it takes six months for Iniesta to adapt, nobody should expect Arda to do so in just two months.

Injuries dependent, Arda’s role for the rest of the season will simply be to be ready when he is needed, even if he is not part of the gala XI.

There are four positions in the side in which the 29-year-old can play. On the left flank, where there is Neymar, the second best player in the world. On the right, where there is Lionel Messi, the best.

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Then the two midfield interior slots ahead of Sergio Busquets, those of Iniesta and Ivan Rakitic.

Status-wise, his battle will be with the Croatian, and this has been brought up at several press conferences, but the players always move to defuse any idea of rivalry between them.

However, ESPN writer Mike Goodman made an interesting point about how Arda fits in nicely in his idol Iniesta’s position, the left interior.

He wrote:

"

Iniesta is still an all-time great—he has elevated the job of being a glue-guy to a fine art—but his strength doesn't lie in adapting to Neymar's movement. When Neymar cuts inside, it has a tendency to marginalize Iniesta, who would be using the same space, rather than create other gaps for the midfielder to exploit.

...

When Turan plays, Neymar gets the freedom to roam inside either taking central striker positions or deeper midfield positions secure in the knowledge that Turan is there to balance his movement.

"

In an interview with Barcelona-based newspaper Mundo Deportivo (link in Spanish), Arda discussed his start to life at the Camp Nou and explained how fitting in at the club would take a while.

Arda said: “You have to look at Barca like a school. The world has one style of play, and Barca has another. Each day I’m learning the style with which we play, improving. I have to accept the style and keep assembling myself as another piece of the team.”

His most recent performance, against Sevilla, was disappointing. Sport's Javier Miguel gave him just four out of 10 for his display.

He wrote: “Bad game from the Turkish international. He didn’t get going and his lack of adaption is starting to become a worry. Defensively he was not great, although there was the odd moment to be positive about moving forward. Overall, though, he suffered.”

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Unfortunately for Arda, it followed up another bad display, against Las Palmas. In that game he was booked and Luis Enrique took him off, perhaps partly to protect him from a red card but also because his level wasn’t high enough.

It is unlikely we will see the best of Arda in a Barcelona shirt until next season, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have anything to contribute between now and then.

There have been promising displays. His debut against Espanyol was good, and he set up the opening goal for Messi in his second game.

Arda got another assist in the 6-0 crushing of Athletic Club Bilbao at the Camp Nou, feeding Luis Suarez after replacing Messi at half-time.

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Also note that Barcelona have won every single one of the 12 matches in which Arda has featured.

He does seem to be getting on well with his team-mates, with Messi, Suarez and Neymar all happy to pose with him for photos on Instagram.

That may seem like a pointless aspect to highlight, but it shows he’s integrating into the squad well, which will only increase the harmony he has with the team.

Although Cristiano Ronaldo recently pointed out he doesn’t feel the need for “dinner with Benzema” or “inviting Bale round to my house”, and a life free of “little kisses and hugs”, per Omnisport (h/t Yahoo), Barcelona’s team spirit has gone a long way to helping them go 34 games unbeaten.

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Arda is becoming increasingly more comfortable at the club, although that is not showing itself on the pitch yet.

His role between now and the end of the season, when Barcelona are aiming to repeat their treble success of yesteryear, will be to do whatever Luis Enrique demands of him.

That’s likely to involve playing in some of the smaller games, allowing Rakitic and Iniesta to rest their legs. It’s likely to involve being ready to make a difference when asked to come on from the bench, if Barcelona are struggling to break down an opponent.

Essentially, Arda knows he must keep working on his adaption to the way this Barcelona team plays, but at any time he may be called upon to deliver.